International day of the Midwife- 5th May

 Midwives are people specially trained to assist women in childbirth.

These special group of people go back a long way. Infact, there are mentions of Midwives as far as AD 150. Midwives had and still do have high status in the society and are greatly respected. Aristotle defined Midwifery as "a most respected profession".

The Bible talks of Midwives too: Exodus 1:16-21; midwives were asked to kill male children at birth . They faced by an ethical dilemma and so had to lie to the king and saved the children ; and God made the midwives prosper.

Until the 16th century midwifery was practiced entirely by women . Over time, men have gradually mustered this profession too!

Midwives were originally licensed under the authority of Churches to ensure that they did not carry out abortions. It was a Midwife's job to baptise the sick babies.

The world and especially countries like the United Kingdom, Kenya and Africa at large, still have Midwives and men who practice Midwifery. Seeing as 70-80% of essential health care is provided by midwives, there is need to invest heavily in this profession. 

Among other reasons, I am here because a Midwife didn't squeeze me to death!

Please join me in celebrating these wonderful professionals that are respected by individuals, families and the society at large. Happy International day of the Midwife and all that practice Midwifery!

Special mention:

Appreciation to Ms. Mapaballo for providing some of the Midwifery research.

About the Author

 Lucy Gacheru is an expert in Human Capital Management for health (HRH) with a keen eye for Policies, Performance management, Recruitment, International capacity building of staff and partners, Operational systems set up, Change Management, Staff relations and Conflict resolution. She is a Global professional. You can reach Lucy at: lucygacheruemod@gmail.com